


Destined To Rise

by Carnal_Instinct



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Action, Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Implied Relationships, Other, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Romance, Self Confidence Issues, Spoilers, Will Not Follow the Yashahime storyline
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-05
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:35:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23496874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carnal_Instinct/pseuds/Carnal_Instinct
Summary: Despite returning to her normal life, Kaname Kururugi is torn inside. She longs for the adventure of the Feudal Era and the friends she experienced them with. It has been a month's time since she was last in Feudal Japan and nothing feels quite the same anymore. With her Shikigami wearing off, she wonders if there is any possibility of her returning and if so, how would she get home this time?
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/InuYasha, Kohaku/Rin (InuYasha), Miroku/Sango (InuYasha)
Kudos: 4





	1. I Wasn't Ready To Go

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by the PS2 game "InuYasha: Secret of the Cursed Mask." So I started this story about 8 years ago back in 2012 and with recent events taking a toll on the world, I found myself browsing old things and stumbled across my unfinished work on fanfic.net (and fumbling for the password for the account). I was re-inspired by the old writing and while I no longer have all the notes of the once coherent story and events, I remember how I wanted it to end and I want to see this through. They story was originally called "Bound Everlasting" but I have tweaked it into a new one. The story will consist of elements from the video game and InuYasha: The Final Act so spoilers will be everywhere! The First 4 chapters re-purposed versions of the original I posted on fanfic, all chapters after are new.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaname has settled back into her normal life with some reluctance to the day-to-day basis of it all. She feels more out of place here than she ever did in the Feudal Era.

"How long has it been now... _A month_ , right? That sounds about right.." Kaname Kururugi thought to herself, slowly making her way up the steps of the Kururugi shrine dressed in her Junior high uniform. The setting sun radiated an orange tint across the city of Tokyo, Japan signifying the late evening as she returned home before her parents could worry. She met up with a few friends after school to have lunch, the sheer luxury of eating in a restaurant with her school mates again not taken for granted and to be honest, she could use the distraction. If only they had known what she endured a month ago. Those tales were kept to herself, sure she would sound like insane explaining it all to her friends. They were better off giggling about others who attended their school and complaining about grades and teachers. Those modern teenage things did not compare to the simple life in the darkness of a forest or a rotting old shed with the stars, the moon, and a well-lit campfire as your only means to see. Eating fresh caught fish or a recently killed animal. If lucky enough a nice bag of chips or a bowl of Ramen. The dirt and grass was one's chair and bed. For her and her _new_ friends, that was luxury. Being _alive_ , healthy, and together. Having each other close by and planning their next movement knowing that they would make it to the sunrise. Inside, she wanders if _this_ was even normal anymore.

Yeah, that felt like forever ago now but it had only been a month's time since she returned home from her trip to the _other world_. **The Feudal Era** ; 500 hundred years into the past where demons and all sorts of evil existed. And it has honestly been the worse month of her life. There was no excitement, no sense of adventure. Just the everyday patterns of the average teenager and trying to keep up with everyone she knew at school. Compared to the weeks she spent in the Feudal Era with all the adventures and friends she made along the way, home was just...dull. _Dull and lonely_. Just a rut of getting up, going to school, doing chores and then heading to bed. Fortunately, she was able to keep in contact with the elder school student Kagome Higurashi and the half demon InuYasha who was able to pass through the Bone-Eater's Well. A pleasure she was denied on various occasions. Mainly because it was not the way she entered into the past in the first place. In the month she was gone, they had only contacted her twice. It lit her soul when they came, and made her readjustment back into her normal life a little easier, and yet it tore her inside when they had to depart. But that was only two of many she encountered and befriended. She missed them all. Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, Kohaku, Rin, Utsugi, Lady Kaede, Grandpa Kakuju, and even that stoic Lord Sesshomaru. As well as many others who have assisted in their adventure. It has been weeks since she last saw Kagome or InuYasha. Worry set in that something serious may have happened, but she knew her friend's strength. They could overcome _anything_...right?

Then there was the new power she discovered within herself with the help of her old Ancestor of that time, Kakuju. The spiritual power called Shikigami. It gave her a feel of usefulness in that world and it even made her stronger, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Like her close friends, it gave her hope when had her doubts. It made her feel strong when she was on her own and more importantly, it connected her to their world. A welcomed blessing. However, ever since her return to the present time, Kaname's found that maybe her new found ability was only valuable in that time. In this time period, it has not been as strong as when they defeated Naraku once and for all. If anything, it could be fading away. With every attempt in summoning the power, the results became more disappointing and it was getting to the point where she would simply discourage herself from trying. And like her shikigami, her hope of using it again faded as well. All the strength she thought had inside her waned over time.

Finally reaching the top of the stair, Kaname's sorrowful gaze turned to the storage warehouse where it all began for her. Nothing had changed about its outside. It was still the old and dusty storing facility. The hole that caught her foot a month ago had been repaired by her father after she made him aware of it. After he finished it, Kaname asked him if had seen anything strange about the hole for a while. He said no, not much to her surprise. It was " _just a hole in the rotted, broken wood planks"_ he insisted. Absentminded of her actions as she was lost in thought, Kaname's feet slowly carried her in the direction of the storage.

"I just wonder how they are doing, that's all..Kagome tells me that everything is alright..But.." She stopped at the door of the storage room finally realizing that she had approached it. Her delicate fingers pressed against the wooden doors, tentatively sliding to the metal handles. Despite what Kagome had told Kaname, there was not much of anything told about..Rin or Sesshomaru. If they are alright, too. Perhaps it was some lingering guilt for getting innocent Rin kidnapped by Naraku. Surely, Sesshomaru wouldn't hold that against her, would he? She never really got the chance to make amends for that, let alone confess how it was somewhat her fault it happened. Kaname thought a little more before sighing and closing her eyes as she pressed her forehead against the doors.

"Kaname! Are you out here!" A deep, male's voice called out, causing her to take her hand away in a quick jerk back and turn in the direction.

"Uhh, Yeah dad! I'm home now! Kaname yelled, running back around to her home. Her father stood there at the doors, welcoming her back home from school and letting her in. At the same time instructed her of her chores that still needed to be taken care of. He paused for a moment, however, looking over the Kururugi child.

"I'm starting to worry about you, Kaname. Ever since the doll festival, you haven't been yourself, have you?" Her father asked watching for signs of a reaction that would answer his questions for him. Kaname's face had turned a bit ill-struck but a split second after she smiled and turned to face him. "I'm fine, really! I-I just... made some really good friends during the festival this year." Uh-oh, there was that overwhelming warm feeling again. Fulfillment turned to empty sorrow, she thought she buried that down weeks ago. Her stomach began to churn with mix feelings and she could feel her eyes and limbs growing heavy. She was overflowing inside, somehow talking about it made it pour out of her all at once or maybe her father asking to be opened up to and her need to do share what ached her brought it full force. She had kept everything to herself, but there was still no way she could fully confess her experiences without sounding crazy. Kagome thought it best, _too_ , to just keep it a secret if it didn't hurt anyone. But it hurt her. "and.." she paused, choked on her words. "I don't get t-...I don't get to.." She couldn't finish it. Despite having tried to move on, it was simply too much to let go and pretend it never happened at all.

Kaname's smiling face then turned into a force one, trembling with a heavy stream of tears finally falling down her cheeks and dripped quickly onto the floor. She turned away trying to hide it but a small sob escaped and it did not go unheard. Her father looked surprised, but having gathered the missing pieces of her tale himself, he was able to put together what she was trying to say. He smiled reassuringly to her and pulled his daughter to him for the warm and tight hug she desperately needed. He has never known her to be so broken up over such a thing, especially with their teachings. "It's alright, Kaname. you know what they say about making friends at the doll festival.." His hand brushed over her head as she started to burst into sobs against his casual garbs, his arms seeming to be the only thing holding her together at all. "You'll see them again when fate allows it. Like at the next festival, for instance. People come all over for it. I'm positive you will see them there, next year.." Kaname could only continue to sob as her father spoke. He didn't know the the truth and therefore couldn't fully grasp the depth of her despondency. Would he have believed her if she did try to explain it all? Especially about stumbling onto their shrine five hundred years into the past? These weren't any ordinary friends one could simply bump into on the streets or call on her cell phone. But it was because he did not know that she would have to calm herself and lose herself to the embrace and the love of her parent. Through her tears that would not stop falling, Kaname looked up to her father and tried to smile again.

"You're right." She managed to speak with a broken tone, attempting to choke back the rest of her soft weeps. "I-I'll see them again.."

Later that night, Kaname lied awake in her bed. A bit exhausted from chores and homework, but wide awake nonetheless. It wasn't the first time and she was pretty sure it wouldn't be the last. There was hope that her outburst earlier would aide her to simply fall asleep and stay that way for the entirety of the night. With all the millions of thoughts that ran through her mind it was a miracle she could actually force it to reach the calm, dormant state so that she could actually drift off. All she could think about was her adventures and what have taken event previous to her time-travel, using them as an anchor to pull her into the sandman's call.

She was an ordinary girl then, with ordinary problems. She'll do her chores, focus on her work, continue trying to keep track of her school friend's "grown up" lives, and love her family a little more if possible. _'Maybe I need something else to distract me.'_ He half-awake mind pondered on. The thing her friend on the bus ride home was telling her about replayed in her mind, the comment she made that caused Kaname's cheeks to flush. **_"You know..you don't have a guy yet.."_** That was what she said. Kaname remembered how she felt so out of the loop with her female friends who had boyfriends or pursuing a guy. They never even told her, sure out of her fear of hurting her feels but they didn't have to treat her as if she so naive. Even with her withdrawn nature from them earlier today (and they did not hesitate to point it out it her, either), if she didn't go to lunch with them she would have probably never learned of who was with who at this point. _'Why do I feel so out of the loop wherever I am?'_

Kaname herself, she didn't have anyone.. _romantically_. It was not the best of thoughts to have at this moment but they always managed to find their way into her brain and play with her heart. Lying there in her bed under the covers, Kaname squeezed her closed further to make an attempt at falling asleep earlier than what her mind would be at peace with. Just to try not to drift to that horrible mindset. Filling her mind with her friends in the feudal era. Curiously wandering on how they would react to having someone tell them that. Of all of them, InuYasha's reaction would have probably made her giggle the most. But then, he was never really alone as far as she knew. He had Kagome. Anyone with eyes could see that. They argued constantly like a couple who have been married for years. An epiphany then enlightened the young girl, making her reopen her eyes. _They all had someone to cherish in that way_. Grandpa Kakuju and Utsugi were laid to rest together so their souls could be eternal in the afterlife. Miroku and Sango also had each other. Another pair whose feelings were worn in their faces like masks despite Miroku's creepy behavior. Shippo of course was too young to love in that way, but he's wise enough to understand the devotion of one person to another. He had parents who loved each other, of course he knows what it means to feel the love of the others.

A random thought then came to her mind. All the friends she made. And how they really cared for each other. But she wandered. Did Kaede ever love anyone? She was a priestess,sure but...So was Kikyo and it while it would be against her vows she couldn't imagine Kaede betraying her heart's desire, But maybe she did as such a waver had brought InuYasha and Kikyo to their tragic demise. And Sesshomaru, did he love anyone? She would imagine someone bearing the same sovereignty as he carried himself. Plus he made that same grumpy face as InuYasha when she tried to be kind to him, and it seemed to work for the little brother. Not with Rin, though. His face never changed with her that Kaname saw, but there was never a moment Rin wasn't smiling at her Lord. Certainly Rin was _way_ too young for that sorta thing. Kaname never really did learn why the young girl followed such a majestic killer. It just didn't seem his character to be the babysitter type. He just seemed to... be indifferent to everything. But Rin was attached to him while Sesshomaru did not give off any friendly vibes. But he was kind enough to help Kaname when she needed it, too. When she got lost in the manor and then the battle with Naraku. And that time where she was allowed to play with Rin in the Field of Ignorance. Demon or not, he couldn't have been all that bad of a person that everyone else let on. He's more like a guardian, just would not show it until everything was truly bleak. Sorta like InuYasha when Kaname first met Kikyo. He wouldn't openly admit that he still loved her, but he was still there for Kagome when she felt down. That's what lovers do for one another. Being there for each other and sticking it out, even when it just gets plain crappy.

"Maybe he does love someone..and he just won't admit it. Someone like.." Kaname then stopped herself and popped up on her bed, shaking her head. "No no no! Not like that! That would be impossible! The thought itself was bad enough but I almost said it out loud!" Kaname gave an exasperated groan and fell back into her pillows, shoving one over her face to hide it from the world. Sesshomaru having feelings for a human girl like herself. That would be silly..Right?


	2. Back Down the Rabbit Hole

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaname tries her best to move forward with her life, but a dark feeling compels her heart to strive for the past again.

Kaname found herself standing in front of the storage room again the next morning. This time she did not reach for the door handle. Just stared at it as if waiting for some miracle to happen on it's own. Something extraordinary, unlike the day to day she has be droning through for sometime now. Nothing was going to, of course, and she very well knew that. What was there left to do now but accept it? Accept that she has already lived out her destiny, now there was nothing to do but just keep living. Kaname was pretty sure that anyone in her position would bear these same struggles, one could not just simply return to their normal life after going through the things she did. Kagome is living proof of that, there was very little reason for her to come back to the Feudal Era once she realized she could return back home. Unfortunately for the Kururugi teen, she had no choice but to do exactly that. Just keep living. She felt torn. Torn between the past and the present. _'It's not fair. Everyone I deeply admired existed 500 years before I was even born'_. With a determined look on her face, Kaname then took a firm hold of the door handles and pulled them wide open, marching in with a goal in her heart. It was dark, as expected. Dust faintly catching the sunlight that gave the overstuffed room some light. She keeps forgotten how crowded it got inside when all the festival decorations filled the space again. Leaving the door open for some sort of illumination in the storehouse, she stayed along the side, eyes focused on the floor while maneuvering against stands and stacked boxes as not to trip over them. She found the spot where new, smoother wood had replaced the area that was once broken apart. It was obvious that this area of the floor had been redone by the look of the wood. It was brighter and did not carry as much dust as the rest of the floor. It just looked like a small diamond shape in the floor.

" _A-ha_!" She whispered to herself and lowered down onto her knees in front of it, blocking the light from the small area. Kaname gently placed her fingertips against the clearer area, both of her hands soon pressing into the center of the diamond. She's been contemplated this moment since she woke up, the idea coming to her in a faint, yet almost lucid dream where her ancestor Utsugi was there. Recalling how she came into the older world by Utsugi's magic and returned to the present once it vanished, perhaps that was the missing key Kaname really needed. Her own Shikigami power was strong, but put against Utsugi's it was just a blip on the scale. Kaname can remember the vibrancy of each elements in the air when Utsugi used her powers and how overpowering it was when she wielded it to fight. If that was the case, then moving back and forth between the two worlds would be easy if she mimicked that of her ancestor's resolve. Even if she was just a doll made to look like the original, there was so much of her love and willpower driving the Utsugi she knew to her goals. With that kind of willpower, she knew she would never be stuck in one world or the other and would be able to see her friends again without abandoning her family.

Kaname reached over into one of the single boxes she remembered held the leftover dolls and dug one out. Lightly brushing over the smooth, wooden carving she traced her finger around the pentagram painted into the body before placing it down in the center of the renovated. In a slow, calming exhale, she closed her eyes and focused her mind on the small pentagram, just as she had done many times in practicing with her Shikigami. She tried hard to embody the will of Utsugi, not as the peaceful human who died smiling with the soul of her true love but the embodiment of sorrow and wrath twisted from that love. The monster who tried to steal her soul and attacked her friends. _'...That's not right'_. Kaname opened her eyes as she remained still for a few minutes, disgusted with herself for even thinking like that. _'Utsugi was not a monster.'_ She knew the Hitogata that was Utsugi did everything she did out of love for Kakuju, to return to him as a human and be loved in return by him for her mortality. And Kakuju never stopped loving her, either. He, who made her what she was and searched endlessly for her to right the wrong. Until it killed him. 

"How selfish of me... I could never taint what they had for this." Kaname gave a hopeless sigh, slumping down onto her bum. She rubbed at her temples to bring down the pressure that built up from her hard concentration. "I should have known better than to try that." She laughed a little to herself, ashamed of her own actions. It might have worked a month ago if she tried to use a doll with her own power, but now since her shikigami was fading off, it just wasn't strong enough anymore.As Kaname stood back up, she bumped against the shelves, more dolls scattering down around her as she let out a small squeak when one bounced off the top of her head. "Well that could have gone better.." Kaname murmured, rubbing the small area of her head where she bonked. That was karma at its finest. Leaning back down to gather them up in her arms, Kaname took a doll in her hands and examined the symbol on it once again, the shikigami pentagram staring back at her. _'I'm...really going to have to let all this go.'_

After she placed them back on the shelves, she proceeded out of the storage room as quickly as she could before one of her parents would take note of her constant back and forth from the structure. Right now, she could not bare to look at it anymore. All that was left in there was disappointment.

Heading now for the stairs leading down to the streets, Kaname was ready to start her day with a more positive outlook. She told her father that she wanted to hang around the town for a bit with some of her friends. A little "Girls' Day Out" to counter the distant personality left on her friends from yesterday. She made it a point to display a more cheerful mood than the one from yesterday. Anything to stop her parents and school friends from worrying about her. After all, she was a teenage girl. There were other explanations and excuses she could use in her facade for them to worry about. Just as predicted of a girl her age, the modern day teenage behavior that perhaps now she was feeling a bit too mature for but content to "fake it 'til ya make it". No more withdrawing from the fun with the girls.Today was the start of moving forward, simply getting out of the house and finding something to distract her mind from the past. Maybe take up a new hobby or try something new to eat. Whatever she chose, she had the whole day to plan it out as she went along. Her own mini adventure. After hopping on the bus going into town, Kaname held onto the ceiling hook for balance and looked out the window as the bus started to move again before pulling her phone out of her dress pocket to check for any messages from her school gang.

Being a Saturday, it was pretty crowded around this time, so close to noon. But it was better than trying to get on later in the day. Kaname's dark hues then curiously scanned around the bus at the many people that were on before her. There was a guy and a girl sitting across from where she stood, discussing where they were going to eat dinner later and how the male appeared to be wooing at the coy female who playfully mushed his face when he made a goofy, kissy face at her. Somewhere in the back of the bus, she could hear a group of guys who were obviously best friends getting excited over a new video game they were heading to buy, arguing pukishly back and forth over who got to try it out first when they got it. They sounded like they were around her age or maybe a year or two younger, but they also sounded excited about playing it with each other. Then at the front of the bus were an elderly couple who had just boarded together. Kaname could not make out what they were saying as they sat down, but they each smiled a bit more at each other after the other spoke. They never let go of the other's hand, she noticed. And just like the couple near her, they woman would laugh with such a coy nature as if they were flirting for the first time when it was clear they had been together for years. Hearing the different bonds that went on around her jabbed at Kaname's heart. That envy clutching her chest, feeling that all to familiar skip of a beat every now and then as she could not escape from it pulling at her insides here. Would she ever experience such a closeness with anyone?

_This was a mistake_

There was nobody in this time she could be close with. Despite how selfish it sounded, it was the truth. She was prepared to pretend this was the way it was going to be and she couldn't change it. Pretend that this was normal, to hurt over and over and over. Kaname's head tilted downward some and her bangs cast a shadow over her eyes, hiding them from those around her. She had never felt more alone than surrounded by people who did not understand her, her growth as a person, her desire to be special to someone. Her grip on the hook tightened with so many emotions filling the space in chest where her heart skipped over- envy, anger, despondency,inadequacy. Pain. Loneliness.

' _But when I'm...with them...'_

An announcement came up on the speakers indicating the next stop location. Once the bus slowed down to a complete stop and the doors slid open, Kaname quickly exited the bus, her eyes still shadowed by her thick, brown bangs tresses. This was nowhere close to her stop. If anything, she had only made it about a mile from her home. But she could not stand to linger on that bus any longer with all those people. All that love and friendship in that one space, and she crying out on the inside to have that warmth of acceptance in her again. Immediately, the young teen took off running back toward her home. As she ran, the wind had caught her eyes and knocked out the tears that built up, blowing them behind her.

 _'I can't do this anymore..I can not live a normal life like I use to. Not when my heart is hurting like this.. I can't just pretend this is what I really wanted..'_ Kaname thought to herself. _'I have to go back... I have to go back..I have to go back!'_

Running as fast as she could and ignoring the burn of her exhausted legs, Kaname raised her head enough to look around the familiar area for the path home. The minute she saw the high stairs she dashed upwards, losing balance for once and almost falling for the second time, but quickly recovering until she was at the top. She saw her father sweeping along the walkway in front of the shrine in the traditional priest garbs and her mother just coming out holding a glass in her hand for the hard working man. Kaname did not even stop to acknowledge them as they looked at her and called out to her.

She had only one thing on her mind. She ran back into the storage room, leaving the door agate and snatched a doll from earlier from its perch. Eyes blurry with her tears and chest heaving from her sprint. If this didn't work, she didn't know what she would do. Keep up the facade that she was happy with her normal life, forever missing the peace and acceptance with InuYasha and the others? Or just lose her mind in the longing? Kaname dropped on her knees in front of the diamond on the floor with the doll in her arms a paint set in her other hand that was used to paint the shikigami pentagram on the dolls. Kaname quickly pried open the lid of the paint and dabbed her finger around the liquid.

"This has to work..It _has_ to work.." She repeated softly to herself, dragging her fingers around in a circular motion across the floor and completing the insides with the star symbol, going over it once again with a second coating. The doll is placed in the center, it's pentagram facing her. She wiped her finger on her dress and placed her hands together in a praying position. Eyes closed, searching her body, her soul for the fading power inside her being. This simply just had to work. She found its faint resonance in her center and focused on it. Her determination hopefully fueling it to the strength it once was.

 _'I call upon you, shikigami. I invoke thee. Please help..'_ Kaname prayed to the spirits as the power felt to only rise a little within her. _'Help return me to the past!'_

With all her might held in the power, she placed her hands on the wet symbol and pushed all the spirit energy she could gather into it. She felt it, the faint shikigami starting to coarse through her arms and down to her hands feeding into the pentagram. Kaname held completely still, her eyes closed and her mind focused. The messily drawn pentagram did start to react, as did the doll at its center. Glowing dimly for just a moment, but then faded back into the red-orange paint color into the darkness. Kaname opened her eyes and looked in shocked as it started to dissipate, but still held her focused as hard as she could. She pushed more, digging deeper inside herself for more energy. Nothing changed. Kaname's lips started to quiver with her emotions overwhelming her. Her hands lifted and her fist pounded at the wet paint, smearing it slightly.

" _Please_ Shikigami! Take me back!" **_pound!_** "I cant go on like this!" **_pound!_** "Take me back to the Feudal Era! With my friends!" **_pound!_ **"Kagome! InuYasha! Shippo!" **_pound!_** "Miroku, Sango, Kaded, Sesshomaru!"

The tears from her eyes dripped onto the circle and with another pound she collapsed forward into a sobbing mess, hairs brushing the standing doll. All of her rage, and all of her grief poured from her eyes as she lamented onto the paint smear. The pentagram then suddenly illuminated, a twinkle of light energy that then gave off a blinding shine. The air around her grew thin and she herself felt light as the circle and star began to spin and grow underneath her knelt form. The next thing Kaname knew, she and the doll was floating into a blinding void.


	3. I'm...Back?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A shocking revelation is discovered after Kaname finds herself back in the Feudal Era

What was going on now? 

Everything turned bright, an overwhelming glow overtook her body. Kaname's brown eyes could not withstand its glow forcing her to close them, and then it was just pitch black. Silence was all around her now. Fading in and out of consciousness, the young girl struggled to gain her wits and recollect what just happened. Did she simply pass out from forcing so much energy? Kaname was dazed for a while but was finally starting to hold her consciousness long enough to fully stir herself awake. Everything happened so fast, it was going to take her a moment to grasp it. One minute she's pouring her heart out to get her powers to work and the next she is... 

Well, she's not really sure what or where she is right now. With a soft groan and a squint of her opening eyes, she was immediately blinded by another bright light. This light was recognizable at least. Obviously being the sun at its brightest shine of the day. Shading her eyes and turning her head away, a familiar sound of something rustling caught her ears. Like the sound of...grass? That couldn't be right. She was kneeling on wood and calling out to the shikigami spirits.

"Wasn't I...Just in the storage room?" She murmured sheepishly before allowing her eyes to adjust to the bright light. As the rest of her body started to awaken, she could feel the tickling blades of grass rubbing against her exposed skin. Her shoulders, arms, calves, and ankles. The warmth of the sun, too, began to become evident to her senses. At once, all of her previous thoughts rushed into her. When she blinked a few times to focus her eyes, the rest of the scenery came crystal clear. Kaname took in a deep gasp, stunned with a loss for words at the serene vision before her. 

The other sounds around her started to fill in the atmosphere, birds chirping up in the trees nearby and the breeze flowing through their leaves. She was lying in a field of pure green grass speckled with flower patches all over. A winged bug occasionally jotting out from one flower patch and zipping across to the next to gather the sweet nectar of the summer flowers. The air was still and quiet as it made ripples over the field like ocean waves. Kaname rose a hand to her mouth, still speechless. She could not believe it. _'Am I...-Is this..a dream?'_ She asked herself slowly raising her upper body off the natural bedding of the Earth's creation.

This called for a test of sanity, just to be sure she was actually dreaming or she had finally snapped in frustration. She gave herself a pinch on her forearm and flinched at the pain. It did hurt. _It actually hurt! She was awake! She was alive! She wasn't going crazy!_ Kaname could only gasp again at the realization, only with more joy in her spirits this time. Every bit of emotion started to overflow in her, tears rolling down her surprised face. She truly made it back. Her shikigami somehow brought her back to the Feudal Era, brought her back to the place in time where her friends were, and more importantly, brought her back safely in one piece. Her friends were here somewhere and the distance between them didn't appear so far anymore. 

"I'm...back.." Kaname whispered joyously to herself.

She took a moment to wipe away the remaining tears from her face and scanned around her. It came to her that she was actually in a very familiar part of the old lands. If she recalled, this was the path to a village she grew fond of that was under the care of a great and kind headman whom she aided back when she first came to the Feudal Era. Her first trip there wasn't very pleasant, but other trips following that messy encounter made it feel like a great honor to stroll through the city. They were treated like royalty after what they had done for the village Headman. With all the traveling she used to do and her old survival techniques she picked up starting to come to the forefront of her mind, there was no doubt where her first stop would be. 

There were some changes though, something seemed different than how she remembered it last. That may pose as a minor inconvenience considering how there were some mental markers set to keep track of where she had been and where she should head. Trees used to stand tall in this area, only touched by the erosion of nature's hands. Now, however, they appeared to be gone. Leaving the stumps behind to be overtaken by the grass and flowers. Surely trees as tall and thick as those would take longer than a month to chop down all of them, right? Even with an army of lumberjacks in this time, the tools used in these times were so primitive. Efficient, yet time-consuming.

Kaname would have to worry about that later. It wasn't as important as what she had in mind right now. Once her eyes locked onto smoke in the air, she knew what to do. The girl launched up onto her feet and brushed herself off as best she could. Giving her legs a quick stretch and adjusting her sandals, Kaname took off toward the smoke clouds of civilization. Running over small hills and forcing her balance through mud puddles that haven't dried up yet. It really created a mess on her feet and the tails of her dress, but she didn't care. It felt right to get dirty here. She wasn't far from her destination. _Oh, how clear this path to her true desire!_ Soon she started to pick up the sound of horses neighing along with the faint sound of crowds of people _. 'Almost there..Almost there'_ The young teen repeated to herself to keep running. The large city itself started to come into view bringing a light of joy into her eyes. Just as she had done before, she completely ignored the tired feeling in her legs. This was worth the exhaustion when she would make it to where she wanted to be.

_'Kasasagi Town..'_ Kaname thought as she closed in on it.

Now she was here. She made it. Out of breath and legs sore from their exerted effort, Kaname still smiled with great satisfaction. She did not want to waste any more time to catch up with everyone she ever ran into here. _The nicer ones, anyway_. But she had to take a moment now to regain some composure and air into her lungs. She stood outside of the Town entrance, leaning against the entranceway as her own body weight became hard to hold up on her own two feet after a run like that. She made her way through the gates of Kasasagi town once her stamina recovered, immediately amazed by the simple tranquility of such a busy city all over again. Maybe because human contact around this era was so important considering how easily life could be taken away by some petty demon. So it was nice to see people in this era bask in their carefree lifestyle, cherishing their bonds in what way they could. After taking a mini-tour of the village and browsing the merchandise in the shops, Kaname began to head toward the home of the village headman. 

The very same headman that accused her of being a demon in their first encounter and locked her away like a criminal. The kind and wealthy old man who learned the truth behind those accusations, and on multiple occasions after been a refreshing kindness to Kaname and her friends in their past journeys. She could only imagine how happy he would be to see her again. 

"Hope he didn't forget about me just yet." Kaname smiled at the memories of the smiling old man. As she maneuvered through the crowds and familiar twists and turns of the city alleyway, she was finally at the entrance to the largest home in the town. By her face alone, getting in should be a breeze. Or so she thought.

"Hold it right there!" A male's voice interrupted her good thoughts. "State your purpose for approaching the headman's home." It was a guard who stood outside the entrance. Kaname stopped as the man appeared a bit hostile and ready to strike should she not comply. Still, she gave a nod of her head and bowed out of respect.

"I'm an old friend of the headman here." She smiled kindly. The guard did not budge at her words which made her start to feel uneasy and her smile to falter slowly. "My name is Kaname Kururugi. He should know that name." She informed the guard.

"We shall see about that.." The guard stated before walking off into the high gates that hid the headman's home, but not before pointing an instructive finger for her to stay where she was. Kaname waited of course with what little patience she had. She was sure that it would be a misunderstanding and she would be able to go in, but when the guard came back, his face held the same mean expression. "The head man does not know of a woman of your liking! Leave now!" He ordered.

Kaname was more than shocked to hear that answer. The headman..forgot her? _But how could it be, it had only been a month!_ "This must be a mistake!" She began, "I've helped the headman of this village before. _Many times_. If he could just _see_ me, this will all be cleared up!" The teen explained as if that alone would gain her entrance into the guarded home.

"I was clear on my description of you, the head man has no recognition of meeting anyone, let alone _a little girl_ like you. Now for the last time, get lost or you will be in serious trouble."

"Hang on there, lad.." An old man stumbled up between the two's conversation, raising his handmade cane to distance the guard some ways back from Kaname in a protective, passive manner. "This young girl be not a liar.." Both the guard and Kaname looked at the old man confused.

"See, this old man knows who I am. Surely he can clear this up and prove that this is all a simple misunderstanding." Kaname insisted further, relieved that someone believed her.

"You are both correct and you are both _wrong_." The elder spoke again, further confusing the two.

"What are you getting at old man?" The guard asked, visibly irritated by the cryptid speak. Kaname tilted her head at the old man eager to hear what he had to say.

The elder took a deep breath, coughed a little, cleared his throat and placed his arms behind his back. "Calm down, lad. I'll explain to you now. This young lady was here before some time ago... She speaks the truth of knowing the Lord here and saving the rest of us from an evil demon, as well as saved the head man on different occasions from the stories she can share." He explained, facing the guard. "She indeed is welcomed here by the headman of the village." The guard took a look at Kaname, who had looked back to him and rubbed the back of her head bashfully under his scrutinizing stare.

"Oh, it was nothing really. I was just helping out a friend." She stated with modest. The old man then turned to her.

"Ye child, you are _also_ wrong. The headman that you knew is long gone now. Succumbed to an illness." The old man said with remorse, lowering his head. "He passed about three years ago around this time. A good man, may he rest in peace.."

Kaname gasped at the news, taken aback by the sudden death of an old friend. That was certainly not something she expected to hear. _This...This couldn't be right!_ _'_

_'How can that be...I just saw him a month ago when I was here..He looked so healthy then!'_

Her voice now softened with grief, she started to speak again."He's..gone?" Then she paused realizing the rest of the elder's words. "-Wait a minute. You said he passed _three years ago?_ " The old man raised his head and nodded to her. The guard, too, nodded that the old headman that lived here was gone.

_"T-Three years...?_ " She repeated in a stuttered breath.

"That is what I said. And in his last days, he could talk only about the helpful little girl and her friends who spared him from death time and time again. A bunch of heroes, he called ya." The old man smiled, but the look on Kaname's face surprised him and the guard. Her face paled with a thousand-mile stare. It had finally hit her that she wasn't gone from the feudal era a month. She was in fact gone for exactly three years.

"What?!" Kaname shouted, finding her voice once again. "Three years ago?! I-It's been that long?!"


End file.
